Fnatic has announced that its support player Net, also known as one of Malaysia’s best support players, has decided to leave the team. This decision came after he rejected Fnatic’s decision to move him from the starting lineup to a substitute position.
After the Shanghai Major, DJ needed to take time off to sort out his visa. Fnatic then recruited Adam “343” Shah as a temporary stand in player. When DJ returned, Fnatic was impressed with 343’s performance and decided to make him a permanent substitute player on Fnatic.
The decision for the change happened as Mushi decided to make an early return after taking a break for medical reasons. With newcomer Adam “343” Shah impressing the team during his stint as a stand in, Fnatic was forced to reorganise the team to welcome the return of its captain.
Fnatic did not express an intention to remove Net from the team; rather it looked like an attempt to reshuffle the team to see which player combination works best. Ohaiyo, MidOne, and DJ are stable in their respective offlane, mid, and carry roles – and it would not make sense for Fnatic to disrupt their positions.
343’s recent phenomenal performance in the team could have prompted Fnatic to test a 343 and Mushi combination; which would mean temporarily putting Net in the substitute position. This wouldn’t mean that Net would be dropped from the team, nor does it mean he would be permanently left out of the starting lineup.
Net posted a long heartfelt message on his Facebook page claiming that he was kept in the dark about the whole situation, and that it was more of an order instead of a discussion. For the full Facebook status, you can take your time reading it here.
Things only got worse when Net’s ex-coach, Kenchi Yap took it to Facebook to reprimand Net on his actions. Apart from Kenchi, Eric Khor, the manager of Team Fnatic has also spoken up about the whole situation. He mentioned that Fnatic has considered other options before coming to this decision, and it was all in the best hopes for Net.
However, in defense of Net, for someone who has been quiet and low profile to speak up about an issue is quite a big deal. He might not like Fnatic’s decision, but it’s not a decision that ended his career either.
If things aren’t bad enough, Valve has a rule regarding the locking in of players before a Major tournament. Valve has already extended an invite to Fnatic for the Manila Major, and it would be a waste if the team’s ticket is revoked due to Net’s decision of leaving the team.
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